Scientific Electronic Archives (Oct 2020)
Pharmaceutical assistance: lawsuits to obtain medication in Sinop-MT
Abstract
With the support of the Secretaria Municipal de Saúde (Municipal Health Secretariat) until 2018, the court orders regarding the obtainment of medication was assessed descriptively and quantitatively through cross-sectional data, which included all active processes registered in the judicial support sector of the Secretariat, 355 court orders including one or more prescription drugs were analyzed. The processes contained 598 drugs, 57% of the lawsuit authors were female and the medication was targeted to 4-years-old children to 91-years-old. Most legal representatives were public agents, 82% (N=292) of them, and 14% (N=50) were private agents. 52% (N=184) of the prescriptions came from public health establishments, and 27% (N=96) from private establishments. 20% (N=73) of the requests had no medical prescription annexed to the lawsuit. 46% (N=164) of the prescriptions were made by specialized physicians and 32% (N=114) by general practitioners. In 94% (N=333) of the lawsuits, the city or the state were the defenders. Regarding the competence to supply the medication, 75% (N=452) of the solicited medication was not included in any official lists, 8% (N=48) belonged to REMUME (the official municipal medication list), and 8% (N=48) belonged to RESME (the official state list). The results suggest it is possible to see face judicialization as an elite phenomenon, if the official lists of medication supplied by SUS are properly updated and if the number of specialized physicians by prescription is emphasized. However, the lack of information compromises the technical analysis and clarifications necessary to fulfill the claims and to ensure safety, efficiency and rational use of medication. Additionally, the court decision to determine the supply of the drug by means of an injunction is supported only by the prescription or medical report without first consulting a technical team.
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